The GPs see patients by appointment. These can be made
online, in person at reception in either surgery or by calling 01844 344488.

Every patient has a registered usual doctor and we
encourage patients to consult with their own doctor where possible as we
believe this improves continuity of care.

Pre-bookable appointments

Pre-bookable appointments are
available four to six
weeks in advance. These are ideal for patients with on-going medical
problems that require planned reviews and for non-urgent problems. These can
also be booked online.

Extended hours appointments

The surgery offers 7.5 hours of appointments per week
outside of usual core hours (Mon - Fri 8:00am to 6:30pm). There are a
mixture of appointments on early mornings from 7:20am, late evenings from
6:30pm and on certain Saturday mornings from 8:00am until 12:00pm. Please
phone reception or use the online appointments system to book these
appointments. These are a good option for working people with a routine
problem.

On the day appointments

Every day each doctor has
book on the day appointments for more urgent medical problems. These can be booked by phone,
in person or by signing up to online appointments. All on the day
appointments are released at 8.00am.

If all the appointments for the day have been booked
then you will be offered a telephone consultation with your own doctor or
the duty doctor. They will arrange to see you if clinically necessary or may
solve the problem over the telephone.

You may also be offered an appointment or telephone
call with one of our nurse practitioners if appropriate. They are both able
to prescribe and make onward referrals.

Telephone consultations

All of the doctors offer telephone consultations.
Please phone in the morning and the doctor will usually phone back between
morning and afternoon surgery. A telephone consultation with your usual
doctor can often clarify the urgency of a particular problem and they are
able to arrange an appointment more quickly than a routine appointment if
clinically necessary. We hope this might help solve the problem of having to
repeatedly phone on the day for an appointment.

Home visits

The doctors will visit patients at home if they are
truly housebound or terminally ill. It is helpful to phone as early in the
day as possible ideally before 10:30 am. Visits are usually done between
morning and afternoon surgery. The doctor will always phone back first to
gather more information to assess the urgency and that the problem cannot be
resolved over the telephone or by referral to a more appropriate service.

Patients are reminded that the surgery is much better
equipped to assess medical problems than the home environment and doctors
can see many more patients in surgery in the time required for a home visit.